CMO Moves July 2026
July saw 41 CMO appointments worldwide, split almost evenly between 20 women and 21 men. Of those, 11 were internal promotions, while 30 firms looked outside their own ranks to fill the role. More than half of the new CMOs - 22 in total - are taking on the top marketing job for the first time. Cross-industry moves are relatively uncommon, with just 5 appointments going to what we like to call "industry travellers".
In the U.S., 24 CMOs were appointed across 14 states. New York and California led the way with 4 hires each, followed by Michigan and Massachusetts with 3 apiece. Elsewhere, India had a particularly active month, announcing 5 new CMO appointments. England and France each recorded 2, while Sri Lanka, Cyprus, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, South Africa, Australia and Iraq each welcomed one new CMO.
CMO Moves byIndustry
- Tech: 12
- Retail: 5
- Financial Services: 5
- Professional Services: 4
- Manufacturing: 4
- Restaurants: 3
- BioTech, Pharma, Healthcare & Wellness: 2
- Media, Sports & Entertainment: 2
- CPG: 2
- Hotel and Travel: 1
- Automotive: 1
Spotlight on Recent Appointments:
- ANZ has promoted Sian Chadwick after she used marketing effectiveness modelling to rebuild brand investment in its Australian retail bank. Her group-wide remit covers brand strategy, measurement and investment governance, with an agency review and the future of the Suncorp Bank brand among her first tests. Having volunteered marketing for zero-based budgeting, she now has to make the case for its spending every year.
- Meta has promoted 17-year veteran Denise Moreno, whose experience spans consumer marketing and product growth across WhatsApp, Threads, Meta AI and smart glasses. She takes responsibility for brand and product adoption as predecessor Alex Schultz moves into the Chief Data Officer role. Her challenge is to sustain growth while building trust in a company facing scrutiny over its products’ impact and shifting AI strategy.
- WHOOP has hired former Nike CMO Dirk-Jan van Hameren, bringing three decades of sports marketing experience to its subscription wearable business. His task is to broaden WHOOP’s appeal beyond elite athletes and performance enthusiasts while competing with Apple and Garmin. Building desire will matter, but so will giving customers a reason to keep wearing—and paying for—the device.
- Aura has appointed Steven Tristan Young, whose background includes Poshmark, Grubhub and American Express, to lead marketing for its family digital-safety subscription. His challenge is to earn enough trust for customers to share sensitive personal information and subscribe, without relying on a constant stream of security scares. His initial focus is on strengthening the team and marketing capabilities around a simple promise: protection that gives people less to worry about.
- GM has hired Allyson Witherspoon after 12½ years at Nissan and Infiniti, bringing experience across global brand strategy, U.S. marketing, product launches and dealer networks. She inherits strong sales momentum at Buick and GMC, with a mandate to preserve their distinct premium positioning as GM adjusts its electrification plans. The balancing act is to maintain confidence in future EVs while supporting the petrol-powered trucks and SUVs that underpin today’s profits.
- Masco has appointed Brad Hiranaga to connect marketing, digital capabilities and customer insight across a portfolio including Behr, Delta and hansgrohe. Drawing on his experience at General Mills, he will need to help independently successful brands share expertise and tools without slowing them down. With Behr also appointing its own CMO, Andy Lopez, clear decision-making authority will be essential to making the new group role effective.
Read more about each CMO and the scope of their new mandates via the links below:
